SongBy Adam Sedgley

Featured in: Favicon

birdnote.org

Articles

Dawn in the Marsh

Jun 24, 2024 | birdnote.org | SongBy Adam Sedgley |Adam Sedgley |Gerrit Vyn |Chris Peterson

It's dawn in a western marsh in mid-summer, and man! Those birds are singin'! The males of more than a dozen species are staking out their territories and attracting mates. One of the noisiest of all is the Red-winged Blackbird. He sings not to attract just one mate, but to gather a whole harem! Drop us a line and let us know what you think of BirdNote.
Claire Wahmanholm: You Can Always Hear the Highway

Apr 26, 2024 | birdnote.org | SongBy Adam Sedgley |Adam Sedgley |Gerrit Vyn

Poet Claire Wahmanholm's work focuses on nature and the environment. As she was walking around a nature preserve north of Chicago, Claire was listening for birds but realized there was something else she was hearing: the ever-present hum of a nearby highway. “When you're trying deliberately to hear something else you really notice it,” she says. That experience inspired this poem:YOU CAN ALWAYS HEAR THE HIGHWAYbeneath the Eastern Phoebe. It hums alongside the Hermit Thrush and Indigo Bunting.
The Secret to Singing Like a Cardinal

Apr 19, 2024 | birdnote.org | SongBy Adam Sedgley |Adam Sedgley |Gerrit Vyn

BirdNote®The Secret to Singing Like a CardinalWritten by Conor GearinThis is BirdNote. Singers with a wide vocal range are thrilling to hear in concert. [Mariah Carey hitting the high notes in “Emotions”]Even if you don’t have any big names touring nearby, you can find birds with impressive vocal talents — like the widespread Northern Cardinal. [Northern Cardinal song]In seconds, cardinals sweep through high to low notes many times.
Spark Bird: John Kessler and the Music of Birds

Apr 12, 2024 | birdnote.org | SongBy Adam Sedgley |Adam Sedgley |Gerrit Vyn

John Kessler served as BirdNote’s senior producer for over 18 years. But before BirdNote existed, he was recording the sounds of Seattle for public radio station KPLU, now called KNKX. After capturing many of Seattle’s well-known spots on tape, he broadened his scope by connecting with local birders to find the best places to hear birds around town. Shortly after, BirdNote's founder, Chris Petersen, sought out John's musical ear to help create a sound-rich show highlighting the joy of birds.
Songs and Calls – They're Not the Same | BirdNote

Mar 23, 2024 | birdnote.org | SongBy Adam Sedgley |Adam Sedgley |Gerrit Vyn

To our ear, the haunting song of this Hermit Thrush is musical, even ethereal. To another Hermit Thrush, the song signals that a male is laying claim to a territory and seeking a mate. These thrushes, like other songbirds, broadcast a variety of calls. Call notes can signal many things – alarm at a predator or aggression toward a rival. Or they may simply maintain contact between members of a pair or flock. So the next time you hear a bird sing or call, listen carefully.
Lesser Yellowlegs, Loud and Proud

Feb 20, 2024 | birdnote.org | SongBy Adam Sedgley |Adam Sedgley

BirdNote®Lesser Yellowlegs, Loud and ProudWritten by Conor GearinThis is BirdNote. The competition for loudest bird is a crowded field. But when the shorebirds called Lesser Yellowlegs sense a threat to their nest, they’ll put up an unforgettable racket to drive the danger away. [Lesser Yellowlegs calls]Smaller and with a shorter bill than the Greater Yellowlegs, Lesser Yellowlegs have a personality all their own.
El clarín jilguero: un canto enjaulado

Feb 6, 2024 | birdnote.org | SongBy Adam Sedgley |Adam Sedgley

El clarín jilguero: un canto enjauladoBirdNote®Escrito por Paula VilellaEsto es Birdnote. [Canto de clarín jilguero]¿Cuántos pájaros creen que hay ahí? Parece toda una orquesta pero es sólo uno: el clarín jilguero. [Canto de clarín jilguero]Su apariencia tampoco dice mucho: un pájaro mediano, medio gris, medio marrón. Y sin embargo tiene uno de los cantos más complejos del mundo.
Decibels Per Gram

Nov 10, 2023 | birdnote.org | SongBy Adam Sedgley |Adam Sedgley |Gerrit Vyn

BirdNote®Decibels Per GramWritten by Rick WrightThis is BirdNote. Birds are loud. [Northern mockingbird, ML 197002, 01:05 ff.]Sometimes it seems that the smaller the bird, the bigger the voice. Some of the noisiest species in the Americas are the wrens, their loud chants and trills all out of proportion to the slightness of those slender bodies.
Strange Sounds | BirdNote

Oct 22, 2023 | birdnote.org | SongBy Adam Sedgley |Adam Sedgley |Chris Peterson

BirdNote®Strange SoundsWritten by Chris PetersonThis is BirdNote. [Call of Yellow Rail] Some bird calls can sound like somethin’ else altogether! For example, one could easily mistake the call of a male Yellow Rail, [Call of Yellow Rail] for someone tapping two small stones together. What about this sound? [Turkey Vultures hissing] They’re Turkey Vultures hissing at one another over a carcass!What about this plaintive whistle?
Voices and Vocabularies - Robin's Evening Song

May 23, 2023 | birdnote.org | SongBy Adam Sedgley |Adam Sedgley |Bob Sundstrom

During the day, an American Robin, a member of the thrush family, sings a lovely, familiar song of rich phrases. But as the sun begins to set, robin song takes on a different character. From sunset until dark, a robin adds ethereal whispered notes to its carol, creating a song of remarkable grace and complexity. In the high latitudes, where twilight lingers late into the evening, a robin may expand its daytime carols into a twilight symphony that continues for hours.